With so many titles to choose from, we wanted to share some of our picks for the best indie games on Apple Arcade, offering a mixture of odd sports, origami puzzles, & ghost hunts.
If you have an Apple Device, then you probably have heard of Apple Arcade. It has been out for quite some time, but new titles are being added to this subscription service each and every month. You can try Apple Arcade for free for the first month, and then pay a small fee to continue the subscription. Today, we are looking at the best indie games on Apple Arcade that you can download right now!
WHAT THE GOLF?
WHAT THE GOLF? originally released in 2019 from Triband. It’s a sports game that is best known for the wacky worlds within it and the many wild, hilarious gifs of the game that were widely shared during development.
“This creativity in what was going to happen made seeing how a stage worked just as much of a delight as playing the game. It was always a treat just to see what surprises lay in each level, or how the developers took flinging an object and made it something new. The control scheme was always straightforward (use the mouse to gauge your strength and choose the direction to move), but there was always some new way to use that simple control scheme in some outlandish way. It’s constantly absurd, resulting in a game of near endless delights as you see just what odd new things have been created for you to work through. It’s easy to control, filled with delightfully silly tunes, and offers endless surprises. WHAT THE GOLF? is easily the best golf game for folks who hate golf.”
Watch our WHAT THE GOLF? first look.
Tangle Tower
Tangle Tower is a murder mystery adventure game by SFB Games which released in 2019. It is the sequel to their 2014 game Detective Grimoire, so you may want to check out that game, too!
“The game is filled with striking places and vibrant, colorful characters that are fun just to look at. The visuals on the characters are especially appealing, with the animations giving them a great deal of personality and helping you to get a feel for who they are. It’s a lovely style that makes the characters’ smugness, cunning, and duplicity stand out all the more, offering a great gallery of potential suspects for you to mull over.”
Read our full review of Tangle Tower.
Grindstone
Grindstone is a puzzle adventure game created in 2019 by Capybara Games. It takes classic mechanics and mixes them into a new format.
This is sort of a new take on Match-3 where you play as a giant, buff person who has a huge sword. He is able to smash and slice his way through little monsters that appear on the screen, but can only slice through chains of the same color! You can connect loads of monsters – from the sides or on diagonals, to destroy them. If you chain up a bunch of characters, you can get power-ups that allow you to switch color in your chain. It’s a simple game but very compelling. Definitely has a big “one more round” feel to it, giving it a well-deserved spot on our list of the best indie games on Apple Arcade.
We featured Grindstone in one of our Trailer Tuesday pieces.
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is an open world exploration game game released in December of 2020 by Ustwo Games.
“It’s a heartwarming adventure game where you play as a young girl who is able to document and learn about all of the creatures on the island where her grandparents live using an app! She can then use these photos to solve puzzles and unlock more areas, slowly bringing nature and meaning to the island that she loves visiting. It’s a wonderful game about stopping capitalism and being a young girl who can do anything.”
Alba was included in our list of indie games that are like Pokemon Snap.
Monument Valley
Monument Valley is a puzzle game initially released in 2014 and published by Ustwo Games, but it was revamped for this platform. This game is multi-award winning, so you know it makes for welcome company in this list of the best indie games on Apple Arcade.
Monument Valley twists perspectives as you search to bring a parent and their child together. The worlds change and twist in the way that they are brought closer depending on your perspective. Often, you can find areas that need moving, or platforms that need forming, so that you can make a path that leads the characters to each other. The game does not have a direct, written story, and instead subtly tells you what is going on as these two characters move toward one another. There is a second Monument Valley if the first one leaves you wanting more.
Necrobarista
Necrobarista is a visual novel that released in August of 2019 – one developed by Route 59. This game is best known for its striking artistic style, which really draw you into its compelling world.
“If you’re into visual novels, especially those that lean more into the visual side, you’ll want to put this game on your to-read list. The carefully-framed animations and expressions make this game an absolute treat to take in…”
Read our full Necrobarista review.
Don’t Starve
Don’t Starve is a survival game by Klei Entertainment that was released on PC in 2013. This game is best known for its Tim Burton-like visual style, which loan the game a menacing, but playful, mood as you struggle to stay alive..
Don’t Starve is one of those games where you know you are going to die, and you know it will happen soon, but you want to play the game anyway and see just how far you will make it. I, myself, have spent far too much time in Don’t Starve. In the game, you start off in a procedurally-generated world where you must find food, supplies to keep the darkness away, and discover secrets on why you are here and how to get out. The weather can be daunting, and the monsters can be deadly, but hopefully you can collect enough food to avoid starving! If only for a little while.
NUTS – A Surveillance Mystery
Nuts – A Surveillance Mystery was released in March of 2021 where it is best known for making players oddly obsessed with squirrel behavior.
“The vibrant look of the game, while stunning, also puts me in a mindset that there is something a bit strange in the area. It’s quite beautiful in the daytime, but as you go through the tapes at night, you’ll start to find some concerning things. Nothing that can make the views any less impressive, but you’ll still find some stuff that may have you wary. Again, why do squirrels have dynamite? The answers might seem silly, but they’re likely far more bizarre than you’d expect.”
Read our full review of NUTS – A Surveillance Mystery.
Dead End Job
Dead End Job is a 90’s-inspired twin stick shooter by Ant Workshop which released in October of 2019, which sees you vacuuming up troubling hauntings (Editor’s Note: Why do so many games have you fighting ghosts with vacuum cleaners?).
“You’re going to be running into the unexpected as you play through Dead End Job, as the game uses procedurally-generated stages to keep your hauntings fresh. If you want to add even more trouble to your day, there are Twitch and Mixer interactivity options that will let viewers hurt you or help you. And given the helpful nature of people on the internet, I’m totally sure they will do what they can to make sure you are doing well.”
Read our full review of Dead End Job.
A Fold Apart
A Fold Apart is an emotional puzzle game about long distance relationships made by Lightnight Rod Games. It was released in April of 2020.
“On top of this visual representation of the hardships that come with separation, A Fold Apart makes sure that every couple feels representation. The two characters may be both male, or female, or any mixture in between – or just two folks who are in love. There’s love in every direction and they all face the same mountainous journey in long-distance dating.”
Read our full review of A Fold Apart.
Have any personal favorites on Apple Arcade? Please share them in the comments and on our social media so we can find even more great indie games on the service!
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